Ancient Beast in the Santuario Madonna delle Lacrime Immacolate (8 photos)

This ancient Italian church, famous for its weeping portrait of the Virgin Mary, also contains what may be the world's oldest piece of taxidermy.





In the small town of Ponte Nossa, a church in the Santuario Madonna delle Lacrime Immacolata (Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Immaculate Tears, also known as Santa Maria Annunziata) has a strange but important relic hanging from the rafters. It's a crocodile.



Ponte Nossa

This is an interesting stuffed crocodile. Although its origins are unknown due to the passage of time, the church has documents detailing how the crocodile was removed from here in 1534. At least it is about 500 years old, according to church records, making it the oldest existing piece of taxidermy in the world.





Santa Maria Annunziata

It was thought to have disappeared, but in the 18th century the crocodile reappeared in the attic of the church. It was hung from the ceiling, and has remained there ever since.



In fact, there are many crocodiles on display in European churches, which is astounding both in its liberty and in the fact that crocodiles are not found in Europe. In Italy, the beast hangs from the rafters in the Santuario della Beata Vergina Maria delle Grazie, and another fanged effigy is in the Czech town hall of Brno and is even an unofficial symbol of the city.



Cocodile at the Santuario della Beata Vergine Maria delle Grazie in the Italian region of Lombardy

Scientists have suggested that this may be what people thought dragons were. Given that dragons appear in biblical stories, such as the one about St. George, the church was a fitting place to display them. Others have suggested that crocodiles once lived in Europe, and these specimens may have been trophies.



There is also a version that the churches could have stored stuffed animals of other animals, but since taxidermy had not yet been brought to perfection, only dense leathery skins of reptiles remained relatively intact.



Crocodile in the Brno Town Hall in the Czech Republic

In any case, perhaps the oldest crocodile in the church is very strange, symbolic and epic.